Gym member retention strategies to stem the spring exodus

Gym member retention is never more important than at this time of year.

For many of your recent subscribers, the twin drivers of holiday season indulgence and New Year’s resolutions have now subsided, and motivation is running low.

You need a new strategy to strengthen your gym member retention rate, and location intelligence is the answer.

How to improve your gym member retention rate with location intelligence software

Here are three strategies you can use to improve retention that you could transform with location intelligence:

1) Adapt services to fit customer base

The composition of your customer base is likely to change rapidly during the post-Christmas rush, and more gradually in the following months.

You need to understand how this composition is changing at each of your locations. Then, you can take steps to adapt your services and persuade customers to stick around.

Something as simple as spotting when a location is becoming overcrowded can make a major difference. You could then think about expanding your premises, or finding a suitable location nearby.

Perhaps your age demographics have changed. Or, you might now have a higher ratio of commuters. This would give you clues as to the value of additional services such as a creche, canteen or extra bike/bag storage.

2) Take customer feedback on board

Ask for customer feedback regularly, aggregate it and plan tangible action to address any problems or emphasise popular aspects. Find out whether:

Certain machines are used more than others: do you need additional equipment?

Class size options are suitable: do you need to add smaller groups to your roster?

All abilities are catered for: should you add a class for beginners or advanced practitioners?

Themes are applicable to local demographics: do you need to change your classes, music or decor?

Customers have enough time to attend: do you need to extend your opening hours to accommodate late workers?

Use location intelligence software to gain a deeper understanding of your target demographics and initiate solutions before problems occur. Analyse social media sentiment to see what your customers are saying. Or, find out where and when your customers typically travel to fine-tune your opening hours.

3) Reach out to non-attendees

Check your records for habitual non-attendees and reach out to them with targeted promotional emails or leaflets.

Offer incentives to encourage them to maintain their subscription based on the data and feedback you already have. This could include:

Also, try to position adverts in locations frequented by your customers, such as key commuter routes. Promote the benefits of sticking with an exercise regime in the long-term using messaging that’s aligned with their key traits.

Use location intelligence software to tailor your marketing message towards specific demographics and decide where best to place advertising for maximum effect.